Time out needed on Indigenous legislation: Catholic Social Services

Published: 13 August 2007

Condemning the lack of consultation on the Federal Government's
Northern Territory Indigenous legislation, Catholic Social Services
Australia chief, Frank Quinlan, yesterday insisted on two months of
deliberation before passage of the bills presently before Parliament.

"The
Inquiry process has been inadequate and the lack of consultation in the
lead-up to the tabling of the legislation last week ahead of the one
day Senate Committee hearing last Friday is to be condemned," Mr
Quinlan said in a statement.

"With no notice, more than 150
submissions were made to the Senate Committee. Yet only a few days
later the majority Committee's view is expressed in just four pages,
including recommendations. Is this an adequate consideration of issues
of this scale?

"Senators need more time to read and fully consider the implications of this significant legislation," Mr Quinlan said.

In
its submission to the Senate Inquiry, Catholic Social Services
Australia recommended a Senate Inquiry period of at least two months.

That
timeframe would enable adequate consultation with Indigenous leaders
and others, to identify and eliminate racial discrimination from the
Bills, to assess the evidence on the value of provisions such as
welfare 'quarantining', and to eliminate the problems with Indigenous
sentencing provisions that this same Senate Committee said were ill
conceived when they examined related Bills in 2006.

Catholic Social Services Australia's concerns were echoed in many of the 150 submissions received by the Senate Committee.

"If
our approach to the appalling state of Indigenous welfare in some
communities is to be effective and lasting we must engage the leaders
of those communities effectively in developing and evaluating
solutions, including any necessary legislation.

"That the
Parliament has today voted down an amendment calling for the
'independent and comprehensive annual review' of the legislation to
measure its impact on Indigenous people does not bode well," Mr Quinlan
said.